


Do you ever wonder if the stars shine bright for you

by EponineTheStrange (gallifreyandglowclouds)



Category: Doctor Who RPF
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-06
Updated: 2013-06-06
Packaged: 2017-12-14 04:07:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,066
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/832543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gallifreyandglowclouds/pseuds/EponineTheStrange
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Prompt: Karen’s mum had an accident and is in hospital, it’s nothing serious but Steven refuses to let her leave due to filming constraints (massive fight entails). Matt finds Karen tucked away in a corner of the TARDIS completely inconsolable, but he does what he can to help. He ends up spending the night curled up with a devastated Kaz.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Do you ever wonder if the stars shine bright for you

Matt hears the fight from outside Steven’s office, and there’s no mistaking who Steven is fighting with because Karen’s accent always gets very thick when she’s angry. He has to talk to Steven about scripts, but he feels weird standing outside listening to their fight, so he wanders around for a little while and returns to Steven’s office five minutes later. 

Karen bursts out the door and storms past him, and he doesn’t have time to ask if she’s okay because she’s halfway down the hall before those words get out of his mouth. 

Steven pokes his head out the door and says, “Matt, come in.” 

Matt nods in Karen’s general direction. 

Steven rolls his eyes and beckons him in to his office. 

* * *

Once he’s done talking to Steven, and granted, it wasn’t a particularly productive conversation because he spent most of it worrying about Karen, he set off to go find her. The set’s huge, though, and by the time he goes to see if she’s in the TARDIS, most people have gone home for the day.

She is in the TARDIS, though he more hears her than sees her, because her sobs echo through the set.

“Kaz?” He says, stepping inside. It feels weird to be out of costume and on set. 

The sobbing stops, and she peeks out from behind the console. “Hey.” 

He goes and he sits down beside her, and she looks awful (well, as awful as Karen can possibly look) because she’s probably been in here crying for ages and ages. 

He pulls her in to a hug before she can say anything, and she starts crying again, and he rubs her back in what he hopes is a somewhat soothing manner until she stops. 

“Kaz,” he says quietly, “what’s up?” 

She wipes her eyes and sniffles, and then says, “My mom was in a car accident today. Not a bad one, but apparently they were worried that she got a concussion or something and they’re keeping her in the hospital overnight.” 

“Oh my god,” Matt says. “Kaz, I am so, so sorry.” 

“I really want to go up to Inverness,” she continues, “because even though that I know that things are probably going to be okay, I’m just really worried about her. But Steven won’t let me go because we’re on such a tight filming schedule.”

“Hence the fight this evening.”

Karen nods. “I’m just scared. Like, I get that bad things happen, but you never think that it’s going to be to someone you love, you know?” 

Matt nods. “C’mere,” he says, and pulls her in for another hug. He wants to tell her that everything’s going to be okay, but he can’t promise that, and it would kind of be a lie. So he pulls her close to him because that’s what he can do for her right now. 

“Thanks,” Karen says quietly as they pull apart. “We’re probably going to get kicked out of here, soon, yeah?” 

“I would assume so.” 

“I was going to head back to mine and make some dinner,” Karen says. “I think I’ve got a frozen pizza or two waiting for me.” 

“Do you want me to come with?” Matt asks. 

“Would you want to?” 

Matt nods. “Only if you’ll have me, though. I just want to help however I can.” 

“Come on, then,” she says, standing up. “I just have to get my stuff out of my trailer.” 

He walks with her to her trailer, and he wants to reach out and touch her, but Karen’s arms are firmly folded across her chest and so Matt just feels blocked out. 

* * *

He drives her back to her flat, and she does have a couple of frozen pizzas that she sticks in the oven when they get there. 

They move around silently, with Matt getting cutlery and plates and Karen preparing a salad for them. It’s clear that Karen’s still very upset, because even though the room is silent he can feel the sadness radiating off of her, and he feels a little bit desperate because he has no idea what to do to help her. 

They end up watching a horrific re-run of Britain’s Got Talent, and he sees a couple of smiles from Karen at the worst of the dance acts. She finishes her pizza, puts the plate down on the coffee table, and rests her head on his shoulder. He puts his plate down and wraps his arms around her again, and she starts crying in to his shoulders again. 

“Just feel it, okay Kaz?” Matt whispers. “Just let it out.”  

He holds her then, just holds her until she’s done crying, and then he gets up and goes to her bathroom and digs a box of tissues out from under the sink, and brings them back to her. He sits beside her as she blows her nose. 

“I’m sorry,” she says after she’s done.

He shrugs. “It’s the least I can do, Kazza.” 

“I’m a fucking wreck.” 

“Anyone would be in this situation. Don’t beat yourself up about it.” 

She looks down, and he sees the smallest hint of a smile on her lips. “Time for bed, eh?” 

Matt nods, and follows Karen to her bedroom but hesitates before stepping in. 

“Get over here, stupid,” she says. “The couch is no good for sleeping on.” 

“I beg to differ,” he says, but lies down on her bed anyways.

She joins him, and they fall asleep in a tangle of gangly limbs. Matt’s hand comes to rest on a piece of exposed skin on her lower back where her blouse hitches up.

* * *

Her alarm clock goes off bright and early, but it only seems to wake Matt up.

He pokes her arm gently and says, “Time to wake up, Moonface.” 

Karen grumbles something, but opens her eyes. “Morning,” she says. She blinks a couple times, then sits up in bed. “Thanks for not leaving.” 

“Not a big deal, Kaz.” 

“It is to me.” 

“If you’d like,” Matt says, “after filming on Friday, I can drive you up to Inverness for the weekend. We have it off, right?” 

“That’s an eight hour drive!” 

“Not like I’m doing anything else,” Matt says. “Now, go call your family, see how everyone’s doing, and I’ll pull together something for breakfast.” 

“You’re the greatest,” she says, leaning over and pecking him on the cheek. 


End file.
